About

If I could give Mona and Shara six stars, I would. Characters, physicality, narrative, listening... all top-notch. They are both so likeable and watchable! Go see Mona and Shara do Improv!

— David Boyll, audience member

Mona and Shara have been improvising for a combined 16 years. They met in college performing with the Stanford Improvisors and are now both ensemble members at San Francisco’s Un-Scripted Theater Company. In the summer of 2017, they toured the U.S. for 9 weeks performing and teaching improv in 19 cities.

Together, they teach a variety of classes and perform shortform and narrative lonform shows. In each show, you'll see them creating many different worlds, stories, and characters.

Mona Thompson is an improv performer, teacher, and coach. She began improvising in high school, continued in college as a member of the Stanford Improvisors, and never looked back. Currently, Mona performs with Un-Scripted Theater Company, Social Studies Improv, Minerva, and, of course, Mona and Shara Do Improv. She teaches at BATS Improv, Un-Scripted Theater Company, Stagebridge, and Stanford University. In 2014, she co-founded Collective Capital, a company that helps organizations create a culture of innovation through improv and design. Learn more at monajthompson.com.

Shara Tonn is an improviser, teacher, actor and clown. An alumna of the Stanford Improvisors and the San Francisco Circus Center's Clown Conservatory, Shara performs with Un-Scripted Theater Company, Minerva, Mona and Shara Do Improv, Bay Area Children's Theater, and Bay Area circus shows. She teaches improv at Collective Capital, Un-Scripted Theater Company and Aragon High School. In 2017, Shara performed as a clown in the AEMI International Comedy Festival in Shanghai.

Guest Improvisers

We've had the opportunity to collaborate with the following fabulous guest improvisers!

DaveDennison has been improvising for almost as long as Shara and Mona have been alive. He teaches improv and performs with BATS Improv and Awkward Dinner Party. He also does corporate training, coaches solo performers and acts in industrials, part of an ongoing commitment he’s made in support of capitalism. Go Capital!

Simon Pond has been improvising since the late 90s. He worked for a while for The Second City, performing improv and sketch comedy on the high seas onboard Norwegian Cruise Lines. He currently lives in SF (with his wife!)

RebeccaPoretsky began improvising with SIKO (Smith Improv Komedy Organization of Smith) at Smith College. In San Francisco, she regularly performs with the main stage company at BATS Improv and has also played with Speechless, Awkward Dinner Party, the Un-Scripted Theater Company, and Couples Therapy Improv. Rebecca has performed in live and video sketch comedy (Crisis Hopkins and the Kasper Hauser Comedy Group) and an original solo performance (I Left My Heart in Brooklyn – The Marsh). She starred as Señorita Panochista in Spring Break: The Musical, a production written and produced by the Mortified team. Rebecca studied acting and improv at the Annoyance Theater in Chicago, the Flying Actor Studio, the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre, and Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Mass.

Rebecca teaches improv classes and workshops all over the place (mostly at BATS), acts in and writes various other projects, and is represented by agents who never book her any jobs. Most importantly, she has an awesome spotty dog named Pebbles. (YES, you can see a picture of her; just ask.)